Chip Kelly: “In hindsight, maybe we should have bled the clock”

Posted by Michael David Smith on September 16, 2013, 10:25 AM EST

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Chip Kelly’s hurry-up offense has caused everyone who follows the NFL to take notice in the first two weeks of the season. But while Kelly’s strengths as an offensive schemer are easily apparent, we’re also starting to see some of the weaknesses of his approach.

One of those weaknesses is that Kelly’s offense is always hurrying, even in situations when it would be strategically smarter to take some time off the clock. Kelly acknowledged after Sunday’s loss to the Chargers that on the Eagles’ last offensive drive, it might have made more sense to try to take some time off the clock with a slower, more methodical drive than to kick the game-tying field goal with 1:51 remaining, which gave San Diego enough time to drive down the field for their own game-winning field goal.

“I was trying to score; that’s all on me, that’s my call,” Kelly said on WIP, via Philly.com. “I didn’t want it to leave it in the hands of, it’s a tie ballgame. If you score, you’re up four. You got to drive a length of the field to try to score a touchdown. When you look at it in hindsight, maybe we should have bled the clock and not giving them enough time to come down and do it. You learn from those situations. But we were trying to score seven, not three. We felt like we had three, and just thought we had the opportunity to put one in there, and we didn’t get it. We didn’t capitalize.”

Obviously, Kelly is right that playing for a touchdown is better than playing for a field goal. But the Eagles could have played for a touchdown while also managing the clock better than they did. Whether the Eagles were going to score a field goal or a touchdown, they should have tried to do so with as little time remaining as possible, to give the Chargers as little time as possible on their subsequent possession. Instead, the Eagles stayed in hurry-up mode even after they got to the Chargers’ 14-yard line with two and a half minutes to play. At the very least, the Eagles should have let the clock run to force the Chargers to use their timeouts. But they didn’t, and the Chargers had two timeouts and plenty of time for their final drive.

So far, it looks like Kelly’s offensive schemes from Oregon translate to the NFL. But Kelly rarely had to worry about clock management in close games at Oregon, because his Oregon teams usually won by large margins. Clock management is a skill Kelly still needs to learn.

The 49ers don’t have many players worthy of long-term extensions. They believe they have at least one.

Tight end Vance McDonald has signed a five-year extension. The team announced the deal, which puts McDonald under contract through 2021, on Friday night.

A second-round pick in 2013, McDonald was due to become a free agent in March.

“Vance has shown consistent growth throughout his four-year career and his production this season is the result of his dedication and hard work,” G.M. Trent Baalke said in a press release. “We believe he has only scratched the surface of what he will be able to accomplish in his career. Vance is a tremendous ambassador for the 49ers, and his passion for helping others provides a wonderful example for this organization. We look forward to his continued contributions to this organization, both on and off the field.”

McDonald has 10 starts in 10 appearances this season, with 24 catches for 391 yards and four touchdowns.

The deal reportedly is worth $35 million in new money, according to ESPN. The contract also carries $16 million guaranteed, which as we know by now means little without knowing how much is fully and actually guaranteed at signing.

With the bell tolling for Oakland’s football future, the race is on to put a viable stadium proposal on the table. Or at least to act like a viable stadium proposal is on the table.

Oakland has announced the details of a stadium plan that would keep the Raiders from moving to Las Vegas or, in theory, Los Angeles. But the lengthy release regarding the details of the stadium plan is devoid of actual, you know, details.

“This term sheet agreement puts Oakland in the running to keep the Raiders in a way that is responsible to the team, the league, the fans and the taxpayers,” Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said in the press release. “Everything the City and County and the investor team is doing is about putting forward the best offer to encourage the Raiders ownership and the NFL to keep the Raiders in Oakland, where the team belongs.”

The term sheet agreement to which Schaaf referred hasn’t been disclosed yet. Instead, the press release lists the following “key elements” of the plan: (1) “an economically viable proposal that can keep team in Oakland and Alameda County with no taxpayer monies, but instead the use of the Coliseum land”; (2) “a professional group of investors to develop the stadium and other associated mixed-use projects to support cost of stadium”; (3) “the creation of a major Grand Central station-like development around the property that incorporates and enhances the use of the BART station”; and (4) “a location for a new Oakland A’s stadium should the Major League Baseball team determine it wants to remain at the Coliseum site.”

So how much will the stadium cost? How much will the Raiders and the NFL pay for it? How big will it be? How will the revenue be generated and shared?

Most importantly, will the people providing the private financing that will bridge the gap between the team and league contribution expect to buy a piece of the team — and if so, how much?

The press release answers none of those questions.

According to the press release, the County of Alameda will hold a public hearing and vote at 2:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 13, and the Oakland City Council will hold a hearing and vote at 9:30 p.m. ET on the same day as part of an expedited financial development proposal and exclusive negotiation agreement.

The timing isn’t coincidental; NFL owners will meet the next day, and at that time the league office is expected to make a proposal that extolls the virtues of keeping the Raiders in Oakland.

There’s currently no reason to believe the Raiders will be interested in the proposal. Owner Mark Davis has at no time deviated from his intent to move to Las Vegas, explaining that the folks in Nevada stepped forward and crafted a viable plan at a time when Oakland couldn’t or wouldn’t. It would be a surprise if the formal proposal changes his mind.

The issue arose from comments made by Fisher to the media on Tuesday that seemed to criticize the front office for the plight of the team. An unnamed Rams source told Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com that Fisher’s words were regarded as a shot at a front office that Fisher ultimately controls.

“If you go back and look at the transcripts, I was speaking the truth,” Fisher said. “Honestly, I don’t know where this came from. . . . I’ll find out. In our business, unnamed sources, they’re not good. If we’ve got sources within the organization that are speaking, then we’ll address it. But there are no issues between Les and I – by no means. We agree to disagree and we’ve had a fun run, but we’re certainly disappointed – as I said on Tuesday – in the outcome and where we are. We’ve got work to do, but we’re doing it together.”

Fisher specifically took issue with a contention from Breer that front-office personnel “question how hard the team is pushed, with a lack of in-season padded practices being an example of the perceived problem.”

Said Fisher: “Somebody said that we don’t pad our practices. We padded on Wednesday. So whoever is talking obviously has not been out to practice or does not understand the CBA. Enough is enough, Les and I are good, we’re all good. Our focus is on Atlanta right now.”

Fisher also suggested that the characterization of the organization as “Rams Junior High” didn’t originate with anyone in the organization but with those who published the story.

“That came from either the editor or the writer, but I didn’t think the ‘junior high’ thing came from an unnamed source,” Fisher said. “But again, I don’t pay as close attention to those things as you do because I’m more concerned about the Falcons. But I’ll just say this again, Les and I are fine. We work together. We talk every day. I don’t know where that’s coming from.”

Fisher may need to pay closer attention. Breer wrote that “some in the building have come to know [the organization] as ‘Rams Junior High,'” and that the “Junior High” nickname has stuck inside the building. So the name wasn’t manufactured by a writer or an editor; it came from one or more people in the organization.

Regardless, the principal is about to find out who’s been talking out of school. And that’s an exercise that will do little to get those who are or aren’t using the “junior high” nickname to stop.

Casey is dealing with a sprained foot he suffered two weeks ago against the Bears. The Titans were off last weekend and enter the home stretch in a three-way tie atop the AFC South with the Texans and Colts.

Casey, a Pro Bowler last season, has missed only one game in his six-year career.

Mularkey said the Titans are likely to make an extra defensive lineman active for Sunday’s game even if Casey is active and said the decision “could go all the way up” to 90 minutes before kickoff, when teams have to submit their active players for that day’s game.

As the Jaguars try to avoid losing for the 11th time in 13 games, they won’t have two key components of their offense. Again.

Receiver Allen Hurns is out with a shoulder injury, and tight end Julius Thomas is out with a back injury. Hurns missed last weeks game against Denver, and Thomas has missed the last two.

Their absences put even more pressure on quarterback Blake Bortles, who has struggled mightily in what was supposed to be his breakout season. It’s been anything but, and it has thrown the franchise into uncertainty, with coach Gus Bradley widely expected to be fired and real questions about whether his successor will want to stick with Bortles — regardless of what the next coach says in order to get the job.

The 2-10 Jaguars face the 6-6 Vikings on Sunday. The Vikings are playing for everything; the Jaguars are playing for not much.

Week 14 kicked off on Thursday with a Chiefs win and it continues with 14 more games on Sunday, which means that the 28 teams in those games submitted their final injury reports of the week on Friday.

Questionable players are uncertain to play, doubtful players are unlikely to play and out should be self-explanatory. Players who are on active rosters and don’t appear below should be considered in the lineup barring any announcements on Saturday. The teams playing on Monday night won’t release their injury reports until Saturday and are not listed here.

With that housekeeping out of the way, here are all the injury reports for Sunday.

The Broncos say they’ll make a call on QB Trevor Siemian (foot) on Saturday after listing him as questionable.WR Bennie Fowler (knee) is also listed as questionable and Denver ruled out LS Casey Kreiter (calf) and LB Brandon Marshall (hamstring).

DT Jurrell Casey (foot) is the only Titans player with an injury designation. He’s listed as questionable.

Cowboys defensive lineman Cedric Thornton avoided a flag for whacking Vikings quarterback Sam Bradford in the head last Thursday night. Thornton also has avoided a fine.

Per the NFL, Thornton was not financially penalized for his unpenalized instance of roughing the passer on the two-point try that would have forced overtime.

It’s hard to know with any uncertainty what a decision to not fine a player means. Does it reflect a belief that the blow to the head was not forcible and thus not a penalty? Or was it possibly forcible enough for a flag but not for a fine?

Regardless, the decision not to fine Thornton keeps the NFL from implicitly admitting that referee Tony Corrente got it wrong last Thursday night. And it seems in recent weeks that the league has made a shift, deliberate or otherwise, away from openly acknowledging officiating errors. (Indeed, the Week 13 media video from senior V.P. of officiating Dean Blandino addresses two plays from the Cowboys-Vikings game, but make no mention of the missed call on the fateful two-point conversion.)

On one hand, the transparency is admirable. On the other hand, it’s troubling — to the extent that the NFL is wallowing in a slop of flaws that it’s doing little to correct, either by using full-time officials, enhanced replay review, or a video official who would bridge the gap in real time between what seven officials don’t see on the field and what millions watching at home do.

Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall shared a disturbing letter sent to him via the team on Instagram Friday.

The handwritten letter informs Marshall that the writer hates him and that Marshall’s “time is coming” before telling him that “we are channeling a devastating hard hit for you” that will leave Marshall in a wheelchair. Interspersed throughout the letter are a variety of racial epithets and, in what seems to be a reference to Marshall kneeling during the national anthem earlier this season, an invitation to “go back to Africa.”

Marshall said that the letter came with a return address saying it was from a sixth-grade class, which he guessed was done to make sure it got to him. Marshall said he turned the “disgusting, disheartening, deplorable” letter over to team security and coach Gary Kubiak said they are “on top of it.”

“I just wanted to show that … to expose that racism still does exist,” Marshall said of sharing the letter publicly, via ESPN.com. “A lot of people think, ‘Oh, it’s over; it’s not out there,’ but it really is. … I wanted to expose that and that there are people like that and we still have a long way to go as people. I wanted to expose that people still hate each other … whether it’s because of your belief system or the color of your skin or just because I’m not like you, you’re not like me.”

Marshall met with the Denver chief of police Robert White after choosing to kneel for the anthem and pledged $300 per tackle to “organizations that benefit the Denver community and others through the services, awareness and funds they provide” to deal with social issues. He has since resumed standing during the playing of the anthem.

Earlier this week, Giants fullback Nikita Whitlock said that he returned to his home to find it had been burglarized and that whoever broke in left swastikas and “go back to Africa” written on the walls.

Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was fined $12,154 for verbal abuse and using excessive profanity towards an official in last week’s game at Pittsburgh, USA Today reported.

The report said the fine was for on-field behavior and was not tied to Beckham’s postgame criticism of the officials. He continued that this week when he said, among other things, that “Stevie Wonder could see” some of the calls Beckham felt were missed in that game.

Eagles coach Doug Pederson raised plenty of eyebrows this week when he said “not everybody” was playing hard in Sunday’s loss to the Bengals.

And some of those eyebrows were attached to some of the old heads in his locker room.

According to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Pederson’s weekly Tuesday meeting with his leadership council was “more contentious than others” after calling out their effort.

Pederson twice deflected questions about effort last Sunday, but on the third time came the admission. And whether it was unintended or a veiled shot, the players seem to have been caught off guard by it.

“I think it puts us in a little bit of a tough position as players,” Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins said. “Because now everybody wants to know who you’re talking about.”

The council of 13 is comprised of one player from each position group, and includes mostly veterans, along with rookie quarterback Carson Wentz.

And according to those who were in the meeting, the topic of effort was one of the main points discussed, with the conversation described as “testy.” When asked Wednesday about the player response to his remarks, Pederson said the response was “great” and “positive.”

But calling out a room full of professionals is a questionable way to get their attention, especially for a first-time head coach who can’t point to skins on the wall.

“Me personally, although I love Doug, he’s not the reason I get up and play and go to work every day,” Jenkins said. “It’s about the guys in the room. I don’t think our effort or how we perform is a direct reflection of Doug.”

Whether it is reflected in their play now that it has been called into question by Pederson remains to be seen.

The NFL says officials have some discretion in determining whether making a snow angel constitutes an illegal celebration. The league also has some discretion in determining whether to fine a player for an illegal celebration.

The league office confirmed today that neither 49ers cornerback Rashard Robinson nor Packers receiver Randall Cobb was fined, even though both players did snow angels as celebrations, and even though the NFL routinely fines players who break the celebration rules.

The officials in Chicago flagged Robinson for his snow angel, but the officials in Green Bay did not flag Cobb for his. The league’s rules are clear that going to the ground to celebrate is a penalty, but the league isn’t always consistent about enforcing that rule.

A couple of Rams players heard from the league this week about fines that will add some financial losses to the on-field one they suffered against the Patriots last weekend.

Cornerback Trumaine Johnson has been fined $18,231 by the league for a facemask on Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount. Johnson yanked Blount down by the facemask on what looked to be an intentional grab at the tail end of a run late in the first half of the game.

Blount was already down when Johnson pulled on the facemask, although that wasn’t enough to give the game’s officials cause to penalize Johnson on the field.

Rams running back Todd Gurley was fined $9,115 for a chop block on Patriots linebacker Dont’a Hightower that was penalized. Hightower was shaken up on the play, but returned to help the Patriots finish off a 26-10 win.